It was concerning for Australia. The research established that increased internet usage was leading to a decrease in students reading for pleasure. 32% of Australian teenagers felt that reading was a "waste of time" and 58% read because "I have to".
Reading for pleasure has been linked to performance in reading scores. Those who read for pleasure received scores up to 86 points higher than those who dont read.
With Australia slipping against other OECD countries in reading scores and rankings, this is suggesting that engagement with reading amongst children is on the decline.
The research also identified that teachers contribute towards higher reading scores if students were required to read texts e.g. set text or read one book per fortnight and if the texts contained more than 101 pages. It also encouraged reading for pleasure.
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